Renato Jr. Wins the AAPARTT Cup in Argentina!

The AAPARTT Cup was held in Argentina, Buenos Aires on August 3-5 at Speed Paradise, which was host of the 2012 IFMAR 1:8 Fuel Off Road World Championships. The track has an onroad feel, with long straights and long corners.

Friday was free practice, but unfortunately it rained and no practice was completed.

On Saturday the track was flooded. The organizers worked hard to dry the track until it was acceptable enough to begin the event. The decision was made to hold one round of 20 minutes free practice for all competitors, so practice time was very limited.

Unfortunately, circumstances sidelined Tradardi Jr. in round 1 of qualifying as the track continued to dry and break in.

The second round of qualifying at took place at night and the illumination on the track was poor, so visibility was difficult. In spite of the poor light, Tradardi Jr. ruled the round, taking first place, but not enough to be the top qualifier overall. Not to be left out, Tradardi Sr. took fifth place in this really competitive round of qualifying.

In the third round, the conditions worsened. Tradardi Jr. took second place in that round to improve his overall qualifying position.

Tradardi Jr. did well and qualified into semi-finals and by that time the track had greatly improved. The sun grudgingly came out and began to dry the track. Tradardi Jr. was leading his semi, but ran out of fuel and finished the semi in fifth place to start tenth overall for the final.

Tradardi Jr. had a 45-minute final to battle it out for the overall victory. Only a couple of minutes into the race, Jr. was on his way, bumping up positions until he got into fourth. Battling in the fray with the first four drivers, Tradardi Jr. distanced himself to take the second place and began seeking out the leader. His fast and clean driving found his Factory Team RC8.2 on rails and catching the leader. As the clock expired, Tradardi Jr. was in the lead and took the overall victory for Team Associated.